Italians reflect on Prodi's prospects

By
Euronews

Italy is facing an uncertain political future as the country’s prime minister plans to resign next week and the incoming leader looks weakened by a tough vote in parliament.

Silvio Berlusconi will step down on Tuesday. In his place, Romano Prodi is struggling to unite a centre left-coalition that stretches from communists to moderate Catholics.
Can he build a government that can last?
“I don’t think so. There is too much confusion. It doesn’t work,” responded one woman, interviewed in the street on Sunday.
An old man joked: “Of course it will last. We are not all going to die.”
“I hoped for a wider victory for the centre-left in order to push Berlusconi out of the political scene – the character who is polluting Italian society,” said a young man.
Prodi’s government will have to tackle a stagnant economy and push through unpopular reforms – tough problems that will test the former European Commission president’s political skills to the limit.